Folding mechanism



.Nov. 8, 1982. 1,886,832

FOLDING MECHANISM Filed Nov. 10.1927 J 3. Sheets-Sheet 1 I nvent orAttorneys Nov. 8, 1932 A. NOVICK FOLDING MECHANISM Filed Nov. 10. 1927 sSheets-Sheet 2 Nov. 8, 1932.

A. NOVICK FOLDING MECHANISM Filed NOV. 10. 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet aAttorneys Patented Nov. 8, 1932 UNITED STATES ABRAHAM NOVICK, OFFLUSHING, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO F. L. SMITHE MACHINE INQ, OF NEW YORK,N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK PATENT OFFICE FOLDING MECHANISMApplication filed November 10, 1927. Serial No. 232,272.

This invention relates generally to rotary envelope-making mechanism,and specifically to a flap folding device comprising a part ofsuchmechanism.

An object of the invention is the provision of means for rapidly andaccurately folding the closing-flap of the envelope after the side andbottom flaps thereof have been folded and gummed in position, and afterthe said closing-flap has been creased.

Another object of the invention is the provision of novelenvelope-counting mechanism, employed in conjunction with the saidclosingfiap folding mechanism.

The following is a description of an envelope closing-flap foldingdevice and an envelope-counting device embodying the invention in itspresent preferred form; but it will be understoodthat variousmodifications and changes may be made therein without departing from thespirit of the invention and without exceeding the scope of the claims.

The invention will best be understood by reference to the accompanyingdrawings wherein the present preferred embodiment is illustrated and inwhich Fig. 1 is a top plan view of aportion of an envelope-makingmachine embodying the invention; Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation on theline '22 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 3 is afront elevation of a detail showing a transverse cross-barwithadjustable envelope stops or'gauges mounted thereon; Fig. 4 is a detailsection on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2, looking in the direction of thearrows; Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic side elevation of the envelope guideand anti-buckling members with an envelope held therebetween in positionto be advanced by the stops to the closing-flap fold-- ing rolls; Fig. 6is a view similar to that of Fig. 5, but showingthe'stops in positionwherein the envelope has been advanced into the bite of the foldingrolls; and Fig. 7 is a diagrammatic side elevation on an enlarged scale,showing the folding rolls in their sepa rated position, with theenvelope in process of being fed therethrough. 7

Likereference charactersindicate like parts I throu bout the drawings-Ref erring to the drawings, 1 denotes :1.

8a to slides 9 and 9a.

velope stop 10, and slide 9a carries a similar envelope stop 1011. Slide9 is slidably mounted in bedplate 12, and slide 911 is similarly mountedin bedplate 12a. As appears from Figs. land 3, levers 7 and 7 (1,together with their coacting links 8 and 8a, slides 9 and 9a andbedplates l2 and 12a are adjustable transversely to accommodateenvelopes of varying lengths. Slides 9a and 9, respectively, areretained in theirslidable positions inbedplates 12a and 12 by gibs suchas 1111 and 11. Slides 9 and 9a, respectively, are provided withT-slots, 13 and 13a, co-operative with which are nuts such as 14, whichin coaction with bolts such as 15, permit of adjustment of the stops 10and 10a to any desired position in the slides, in order to accommodateenvelopes of varying widths.

Also mounted upon frame 1 are two stanchions 16 and 16a, journaled inwhich are upper envelope feed roll shaft 17 and lower envelope feed rollshaft 18; and also resilient feed-roll shaft 19 and idler feed rollshaft 20. Attached to upper envelope feed roll shaft 17 is envelope feedroll 21; at

tached to lower envelope feed roll shaft 18- f 24 and 24a, carryingshaft 25, rotatively-supported uponwhich shaft is idler feed roll 26.

Also attached to'rocker shaft 20 is cam lever mo 27, carrying cam roller28 and cam 29, adapted to maintain said cam roller in contact with cam30, attached to shaft 31, rotated by means not shown. The function ofcam 30, cam roller 28, cam lever 27, rocker shaft 20 and arms 24 and 24ais to move idler feed roll 26 into and out of approximate engagementwith lower envelope feed roll 22.

top-actuating rocker shaft 5 has attached thereto a lever 32, pivotallyconnected to.

which lever is a link 32a, co-operative with which link may be a leveror a plurality of levers (not shown), actuated by a cam (also notshown), attached to cam shaft 31. Attached to depressing member rockershaft 6 is a lever 33, pivotally connected to which lever is a link 34;,co-operative with which link mayshaft 6 and gauge-actuating rocker shaft5 are of such conformationand so timed with reference to each other thatthe idler feed roll 26, the envelope depressing fingers 35a, 35b and350, and the stop slides 9 and 9a function co-operatively and in propersequence.

V The mode of operation of the device is as follows: an envelope(indicated by the numeral 36), the side and bottom flaps of which havetheretofore been folded and gummed in position and the closing-flap ofwhich has theretofore been creased along the line of the proposed fold,is fed by any well-known velo means (not shown) from the table 37 intothe bite of upper feed roll 21 and lower feed roll 22 and carried bysaid rolls into the position shown in Fig.2 wherein its bottom edge isin contact with stops 10 and 10a and table 4, at the apex of the angleformed by said stops and table. Stops 10 and 100- are so located withreference to the contiguous surfaces of feed rolls 21 and 22 that, withenvelopes of the particular over-all width e.,the envelope body widthand the enclosing-flap width) which are being han ed,when the bottomedge of the envelope is in the positionlast described, the extreme topof the closing-flap will have passed out of the bite ofthe feed rollers21 and 22.

. Thus, in the operation of the folding device,

"the upper end of the closing-flap is freed from the positive forwardurge resulting from pressure of the cooperative feed rollers 21 and 22upon the envelope, clearing the bite of the feed rollers by a slightmargin only,

so that, for the brief interval of. time during which the enveloperemains in the position indicated in Fig. 2, the frictional contact between the end of the closing-flap and one or both of the feed rollerswill be sufficient to afiord a slightly forward urge to the envelopewhich will cause it to square or align itself against the stops. Hence,any shifting of the envelope with reference to the line of contact withthe feed rollers which may have been brought about during the progressof transportation' will be corrected, and the folding of the top flapwill take place correctly along the creased line. Immediately after theenvelope has assumed this position, and through the action of. the camand lever above described as actuating link 34, lever 33 androcker-shaft 6, said rocker-shaft is oscillated, depressing fingers 35a,35b and 350, and cansing them to carry the envelope downward to theposition shown in Fig. 5. In the progress of this downward movement, theclosing-fiap is wiped over the surface of feed roll 22, resulting in thepreliminary folding of the flap along the line of a crease previouslyformed therein. As the fingers 35a, 35b and 350 oscillate with referenceto the axis of shaft 6, the outer ends of said fingers, in theirdownward movement, 'will, of course, describe the are of a circle. It iscontemplated that the various parts of the device shall be soproportioned" and adjusted that the extreme ends of the fingers shallinitially contact with the envelope along aline slightly above thecrease; and that, in the course of the downward movement, the arcuatepath of travel of the ends of the fingers will cause this position ofcontact to progressively shift toward the body of the envelope, so that,

when the envelope is passing the line of nearest approachof the fingersto the feed roll 22, the ends of the fingers will be in alignment withsuch crease. Thereafter, when the envelope has been carried to the pointindicated in Fig. 5, the ends of the fingers will be slightly below thepreliminarilyformed fold.

With some classes of envelopes, it is not desirable toemploy an abruptfiat fold of the closing-flap-a gradual or generally curved fold beingpreferred.- The hereinbefore described coaction of fingers 35a, 35b

and 350 with roll 22 produces a preliminary v fold of the latter type.

Referring now to Fig. 5: Fingers 35a, 35b and 350 exert only slightpressure upon the envelope, such pressure being insuflicient tointerfere with the advance of the envelope between table 4 and saidfingers, under the urge of movable stops 10 and 10a, but sufficient toforce most of the air out of the envelope and to prevent undesirablebuckling of the envelope when it is pushed forward. With the envelope inthe position shown m Fig. 5., the cam and levers actuating lmk 33 andlever 32 now cause oscillation of shaft 5, r

and, through lever 7 and 8,-stop slides 9 and 9a, together with theirattached gauges 10 and 10a, are moved downward and to the left, as shownin Figs. 2, 5, 6 and 7 The stops push the envelope while held betweenfingers 35a, 35b and 350 and the table 4 to the position shown in Fig.6, wherein its upper creased edge enters the bite of the lower feed roll22 and the idler feed roll 26, which rolls have immediately theretoforebeen brought into more or less close contact by the action of cam 30,cam roller 28, cam

rocker-shaft 20 and to lower feed roll 22, as controlled by the size andcontour of the cam 30. Regardless, however, of the degree of pressureintended to be used for the particular class of envelopes being handled,it is important that such pressure be confined tothe immediate vicinityof the line of the fold, rather than being applied .to the entire bodyof the envelope, as otherwise the still undried-gum employed on the sideflaps and on the closing-flap may be extruded from the side flaps andcause the inner front and back surfaces of the envelope to adhere. Thelocalization of pressure is further desirable for the reason that airmight otherwise become pocketed in the envelope and be so compressedasto burst the same in its passage between the feed rolls. For thesereasons, idler feed roll 26 is permitted by cam 30 to remain in contactwith the envelope only until the upper edge of the latter has enteredthe bite of resilient feed roll 23 and idler feed roll 26, whereupon camroller 28 is engaged by the elevated portion of cam 30, cam lever 27 israised against the tension of cam spring 29, rocker-shaft 20 isoscillated, arms 24: and 24a are moved downwardly and to the right, andidler feed roll 26 is disengaged from its position of approximatecontact with lower feed roll 22, wherein it applied folding pressure tothe envelope.

In order to obviate, for the reasons set forth, the undesirably highpressure upon the envelope which would result from its passage throughhard and unyielding rolls in feeding it from the machine, the inventionembodies the novel feature of a highly resilient feed roll 23, thepressure exerted by which is adequate to frictionally feed the envelope,but, at the same time, is insufficient to cause extrusion of the gum,adhesion thereof, or "pocketing of air. This resilient roll is hereillustrated as being in the form of a bristle brush, but it will beunderstood that other expedients may be employed for the accomplishmentof the purpose, such, for example, as a roll faced with sponge rubber,or provided with a pneumatic rubber covering.

The invention also'embodies a novel form of envelope counter, theconstruction .and operation of which are as follows: an oscillatingshaft 37 a actuates a counter (not shown), which counter may be of anywellknown construction. Clam-ped to this shaft is an arm 38, having anupwardly projecting portion 39, a curved portlon 40,.and a lip portion41 (Figs. 2 and 5). Referring to Fig. 1, envelope depressing finger 35bis provided with an aperture, 42, intowhich the curved portion 40 of arm38 is adapted to enter when said finger is depressed. Lip portion 41restricts the upward movement of arm 38 by contacting with the solidportion of gripping finger 356. When the aperture 42 of the grippingfinger is covered by an envelope interposed between said finger and thecurved portion 40 of said arm 38, the

downward pressure of the-finger is transmitted through the envelope tothe arm, thereby oscillating the shaft 37a and actuating the counter.If, however, the machine should at any time be running without envelopespassing therethrough, the absence of means for closing aperture 42insures against the counter operating.

The device comprises simple, inexpensive, efficient and rapidly-actingmeans for folding the closing-flap of envelopes and for counting suchenvelopes. It possesses several advantages over existing device, amongwhich advantages are the following: accuracy in folding is assured byreason of initially feeding the envelope against a stop for the purposeof aligning the same. As the body of the envelope is not bent or curvedat any stage of the closing-flap folding process, the possibility isobviated of distorting the said portion to which there has been appliedgum which is not thoroughly set. During the preliminary foldingoperation, there is expelled from the envelope the greater portion ofany contained air which, if entrapped therein, might, by reason of thepressure of the final folding rolls, cause the envelope to burst. Thedevice affords means for effecting either a gradual or generally curvedfold, such as is preferred in some classes of envelopes; and,alternatively, an abrupt flat fold, such as is required in other classesof envelopes.

While I have described what I believe to be the best embodiments of myinvention, I do not wish to be confined to the embodiments shown, butwhat I desire to cover by Letters for folding an end flap of a blankcomprismg means in the form of rolls acting to feed the blanks and tofold them, a stop against which the blank is fed by said feed rolls, astationary guide receiving the blank from the feed; rolls anddirectingit crease foremost Y between said folding rolls, means formoving operative to apply pressure to an envelope,-

7 means for pushing said envelopeinto engagement with said pressurerolls, and a resilient roll co-operative with one of said pressure rollsto discharge the envelope from the machine.

3. In envelope closing-flap folding mech- I anism, the combination of adriving folding roll, a co-operative idler folding roll, a springnormally maintaining said idler roll in operative relationship with saiddriving roll and a cam opposing said spring to retract said idler rollfrom said operative relationship.

4. In envelope closing-flap folding mechanism, the combination of adriving folding roll, a co-operative idler' folding roll, rotatable upona shaft carried by an arm, a rocker shaft supportin said arm, a leveractuating said rocker shaft, a spring controlling said lever, a camroller carried by said lever and a cam co-operative with said cam rollerand opposing said spring to move said lever. and oscillate said shaft,arm and idler roll.

5. In envelope closing-flap folding mechanism, the combination offolding rolls and a resilient discharge roll coacting. with one of saidfolding rolls, said resilient roll presenting isolated points of contactwith material passed thereover;

6. In an envelope making machine, closingflap folding mechanismcomprising a driving enve ope from the machine.

and means'for movin'g'same so as to wipe the envelope flap over aportion of the surface of 8. The meehamsm as set forth in claim 7including means for advancing the partially folded flap into the bightof said folding'rolls.

9. The mechanism as set forth in claim 8 including a resilient rollcooperative with one of said folding rolls to discharge the In testimonywhereof I have aflixed signature to this specification.

1 ABRAHAMNOVICK.

. folding roll, a cooperating idler folder roll and means for feedingenvelopes to said rolls, a mounting for said idler roll and means foroscillating said mounting to move said roll into and out of operativecontact with said driving roll during a revolution of saidcooperatingrolls, said means last mentioned tion to be varied.

permitting the period of contact per revolueffective width at leastsubstantially equal to the length of the line of fold of the flap to befolded and disposed so as to include the envelope between it and saidroll last mentioned

